NJN Network

Hiker discovers PEI Rural Stategy in fields of Alexandra

By Countryman, special to NJN Network, Alexandra, PEI, Canada, Feb 13, 2009

While wandering around the fields of Alexandra, I found a piece of paper with the following contents. I believe it may be related to the long awaited rural strategy document. I wonder if it got dropped and lost and hence the delay in the rural strategy? Anyway, I am glad to share it with your readers.

To: RG
From: Myrtle

Really neat strategy for Rural PEI

Hi Rob,

Thanks for the cheque. I did a really slap up job on the research for this one. Not only did I check the first page of Google links on a “rural strategy” query, I also checked Yahoo. I have not charged you any more for this additional work. As with the Wind Strategy, I am like really really convinced that a 10 point plan demonstrates professionalism, structure and all that good stuff that Chris Leclair is always going on about. And also looks good on a flip chart. I think flip charts are so dynamic and corner office managerial. BTW, I was amazed to discover that the Island goes on for several miles after Summerside. Who knew?
Read the rest of this entry »

Predicts 6 lean and mean quarters

By Stephen Pate, NJN Network, Charlottetown, PEI, Canada February 8, 2009

Premier Robert Ghiz predicted doom and gloom for PEI in the near future. Speaking to the faithful at a Liberal fundraiser he said PEI was headed into 6 quarters, or a year and a half, of bad economic times with deficits, lay-offs and government uncertainty. He did not provide the party loyal any hope for an improvement. To some he appeared depressed. Certainly the cut-back in transfer payments worried Ghiz. The Premier often bragged about his ability to solve PEI’s problems by going to Ottawa. The $400 million windfall from China would be a capital feather in his cap. But now the Premier has come home from Ottawa cap in hand, dejected. Ghiz’s dose of reality is a reminder to us that PEI’s economy is highly dependent on transfers of Federal dollars. Any cutback in Federal money is disasterous to PEI. Danny Williams of Newfoundland has oil. PEI has precious little to keep the Province afloat. With Ghiz intending to abandon rural PEI, the economy of PEI could soon be in a depression. Premier Ghiz realizes this. The real problem is he has no plan, no solution and is becoming depressed. The Mike Duffy affair just adds insult to injury for our beleagured premier.

Rally for Rural PEI at Legislature 12 Noon on Monday – Family Day

The PEI Rural Alliance rally for rural PEI will be held Monday. The organizers want PEI to turn out in support of rural PEI which is PEI.

I’m a City Mouse who lived long enough in the country to pass for a Country Mouse. In Charlottetown we hear the story about the car dealerships etc. doing well when the farmers and fisherman do well. That is true but understates the importance of rural PEI. Without the farms, fisherman and people who live outside greater Charlottetown and Summerside, there is no industry on PEI that would support 135,000 people. Do the tourists come to look at Water Street in Summerside or Grafton St. in Charlottetown? No, they come for the most picturesque countryside west of Ireland. PEI is staring in the face of declining transfers from Ottawa. Without the artificial middle class economy created by those Federal dollars, our homes would be worth half of their current value and most of us would have to leave for other parts. We need the people who are creating most of the real economic value on PEI.

Get out and support Rural PEI on Monday because it’s important for everyone on PEI

By Stephen Pate, NJN Network, Charlottetown, PEI, February 5, 2009

This is not a get rich quick scheme or a pitch for some course or tapes. This is just the best tried and true way I have of making more money during a recession than any other time. Since I retired at 50, you might consider it. I’m posting this to remind us, myself included, that someone else’s misfortune need not be our own. I’ve been through 5 or 6 recessions since I started working and the 1981-1983 downturn seemed like the worst. Inflation was out of control. Loans cost 23% interest and unemployment hit 10.8% in the USA and Canada nudged 11%. Pretty bad but consider that 89% of people who wanted to work were working throughout the recession. So here’s the trick. Focus on you, your family and those you support. I like simple math. In 1982, I billed $27,000 in accounting services to clients. The GDP of PEI back then was about $900 million. By my calculation, I only needed .003% of my province’s total GDP to break even. Surely there would be enough for me and my family without breaking the bank.
Read the rest of this entry »

Stephen Pate, NJN Network, Charlottetown, PEI, Canada, Feb. 3 2009 with story from Media Memo by Peter Kafka

When a Wall Street Bull tells you to sell a stock, you don’t hesitate and Pali Research analyst Rich Greenfield just put out a sell recommendation on Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. News Corp owns TV, film studios, MySpace and newspapers. “Greenfield has cut his recommendation on the company from a “Buy” to a “Sell.” His logic: ‘While we have long viewed Rupert Murdoch as the most visionary CEO in the media sector…we are increasingly surprised/frustrated with his lack of strategic direction related to News Corp’s television station, newspaper and book publishing assets.’” It’s the same story everywhere: newspapers are a bad investment because they have no profit model in today’s economy.

Stephen Pate, NJN Network, Charlottetown, PEI, Canada, Feb. 3 2009

The US Congress passed a stimulus bill with a “Buy American” clause. Canadian politicians and pundits along with the citizenry are crying fowl. We had it coming. We should have known it. We brought it on ourselves. Canadians like to loudly complain and criticize US policy, lifestyle, morals, health care and human rights abuses with the sanctimonious pride of the little guy.

As I have said for years, it’s bad for business. Freedom of speech is great. I love it but you have to watch your manners with your best customer. The Canadian economy – your standard of living and mine – depends on our biggest customer, the United States of America. About 80% of our lifestyle to put a number on it. Try this out: at work today, start criticizing your boss, then move up to his boss, then go to the Board and your CEO. That’s a silly suggestion unless you’re leaving and even then a bad career move. Here’s a better way to get fired. Call up your big customers’ CEOs and tell them what they are doing wrong. If you get past the first one without being fired, let me know.

Why did we think we could publicly castigate our largest customer and not expect some heat. The good news is the “Buy USA” policy only applies to $900 billion of a $14 trillion economy, about 6%. If we learn to mind our own business and treat our biggest customer with respect, the protectionism won’t spread. Like the blues man said “Before you accuse me, take a look at yourself.” I think Jesus said that first, something about the straw out of our neighbors eye. Put your customer first, I said that.

By Sara Kugler
ASSOCIATED PRESS
with story from Buffalo News

NEW YORK — The news is bad and getting worse, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg warned in a sobering budget plan that seeks to steer the city through the storm by raising taxes and slashing expenses with an eye toward cutting city jobs down the road.

Bloomberg, wielding his grim budget as a weapon on Friday, threatened the city’s labor unions with 20,000 layoffs if they don’t step up to renegotiate contracts and require workers to contribute more on their benefit packages.
Read the rest of this entry »

By Stephen Pate, NJN Network, Charlottetown, PEI, Canada, January 30, 2009 8:47 EST
with story from Reuters

The US economy sunk deeper into recession in Q4 2008 by 3.8% the worst decline in more than a quarter century. The Bureau of Economic Accounts reported at 8:30 EST today “Real gross domestic product — the output of goods and services produced by labor and property located in the United States — decreased at an annual rate of 3.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008,(that is, from the third quarter to the fourth quarter), according to advance estimates released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the third quarter, real GDP decreased 0.5 percent.” Read the rest of this entry »

By Stephen Pate, NJN Network, Charlottetown, PEI, Canada, January 28, 2009

We went to bed unsettled and woke up assured the new budget is pretty weak and will not jump start the economy. CIBC Economist Jeff Rubin told CBC it was a “down payment on the recession. We’ll be back looking for more within six months.” $80 billion and its not enough, or not the right spending. The labour people on PEI say it does nothing for the workers and the poor and they are correct. The NDP and Bloc don’t like it. The Bloc, like Atlantic Canada, are asking for Employment Insurance reform to help laid off workers. They didn’t get it.
Read the rest of this entry »

Calls on Premier Ghiz for Rural Development Plan

By Stephen Pate, NJN Network, Charlottetown, January 28, 2009

An enthusiastic, polite crowd of 300 Islanders filled the North Shore Community Centre last night to demand the Ghiz government stop dismantling the PEI rural economy. The newly formed PEI Rural Alliance made a non-partisan and logical business case to the audience, MLA’s and cabinet ministers in attendance. Closing rural schools, abandoning fishing and farming are bad for all PEI, they said. PEI Rural Alliance called on the Ghiz government for a Rural Development Plan to grow the economy not let it shrink. Peter Llewellyn from Georgetown got the crowd roaring with his optimism and determination not to consider “rural” as a dirty word.
Read the rest of this entry »

By Stephen Pate, NJN Network, January 25th, 2009

Rob Paterson, a Web 2.0 advocate and consultant, says we need to stop and take a look at what we’re doing with all these bail-outs. Do we really need to spend billions or trillions on bailing out bad industries in dying sectors. In Budget week – Packing Jobs Racetracks and Lobster – Throwing Good Money After Bad, Paterson writes “Recent spending suggests that government will over-invest in the old that in the world and will not get behind what is really needed.” He also says “With provinces clamouring for handouts from the Feds for infrastructure projects with the hopes of “spending their way out of recession” (that insanity is for another day!), the reality is we cannot simply replace what we have already built and hope that the past can be restored. Cities must change, adapt, even evolve, if they want any hope of surviving.” Worth reading for Paterson’s insight and positive suggestions. This is not the time for old decisions.

Charlottetown, PEI, Canada – PEI Premier Robert Ghiz is pinning all his hopes for PEI’s future on Dr. Michael Mayne. Paul MacNeill says Mayne is “the man hand-picked by Ghiz to fundamentally change the Island economy.” At this point, we’d say the game is over since Mayne has no demonstrated capacity to drive innovative industry. He’s been living on academic grants all his life. Dr. Mayne is a scholar and “a PhD in molecular biology and protein biochemistry” according to the PEI government website . He best skills would be 1) research and 2) filling out research grant applications. Is Premier Ghiz that much of a dilettante that he is impressed with multiple degrees? We’ll bet that’s it. Richard Brown only has a business degree from UPEI with decades of business and political experience. Dr. Mayne has 17 years experience staring at test tubes. That’s why Mayne got a New Investigator Award in 2002. They are pretty superficial in the Premier’s office.

By Paul MacNeill
Eastern and West Prince Graphic
January 21, 2009

Some cabinet shuffles are meant to put a new face on a government. Some just shuffle the chairs. And others are made for political expediency, not good government. Robert Ghiz’s knee-jerk shuffle of four ministers last week is the latter. It was made, sources say, to avoid even further defections from his government and the target was one man – Innovation and Advanced Learning Minister Richard Brown. The fuel was an ultimatum delivered by Innovation deputy minister Michael Mayne. Sources say Mayne threatened to leave if Brown was not removed. Less than a week after the very public defection of senior Brown aide Gordon Cobb, the Ghiz government was placed in an untenable situation. If Michael Mayne – the man hand-picked by Ghiz to fundamentally change the Island economy – were to leave, the Good Ship Ghiz would sink. It would be over. The premier would have no credibility.
Read the rest of this entry »

Hans Connor makes some interesting points about the informal decision making in small jurisdictions which may to some extent explain what happens on PEI. Economic Development and Small Islands: the risk of corruption.

“The propensity for small-scale corruption. We’ve seen that here on PEI, too. Yes, the downside of the close-knit communities for which islands are known is that it is easy for interested parties to access decision-makers. Bureaucratic checks and balances found in continental jurisdictions don’t exist.”

The article is one in a series he has presented on Island Studies and Island issues in a Prince Edward Island context which are well thought out and presented.

By Stephen Pate
NJN Network
January 17, 2009

While the North American and Canadian auto industry tanked last year, $200 million in PNP funds drove PEI car sales up 36% as reported by Statistics Canada. The net cash receipts from PNP was approximately 10% of PEI’s annual gross domestic product. Rumours of increased car and luxury car purchases by government officials, lawyers, accountants and business people have proven to be true. In every Province in Canada, but Saskatchewan car sales fell. Even Newfoundland reported an 8.7% decrease in car sales despite an economic boom year due to its oil revenues.

There has been nothing but economic bad news on PEI during 2008 amid rising oil prices and a decline in the world economy. The only thing that would explain sales euphoria in cars is windfall incomes from the PNP. Agriculture receipts were down $27 million in 2008, or $45 million below net income for 2006, says Agriculture Canada. CBC reported that fishing incomes are expected to be down $30 to $40 million. The Royal Bank reported that PEI’s GDP was expected to fall to a 1.2% increase in 2008 and 1.6% in 2009.

With Richard Brown out of Innovation, will the Premier’s office be able to pull off another $400 PNP-like scam in 2009 to keep car dealers busy?

By Stephen Pate
NJN Network News
January 15, 2009

The Globe and Mail carries a Canadian Press story New vehicle sales dropped in November, Statscan reports “New motor vehicle sales fell 7 per cent in November to 129,044, the largest monthly decline since August, 2005.Statistics Canada attributes most of the decrease to lower sales of passenger cars. Prince Edward Island recorded a small increase in the number of new motor vehicles sold.”

In a recession or depression, cash is king.

PEI car sales have not dropped and that is lagging the rest of Canada and certainly North America in feeling the effects of the recession / depression. Our economy is, to a great extent, based on government spending and Federal largess. So much of PEI’s middle class incomes are related to government jobs both direct and indirect.
Read the rest of this entry »

CBC reported that Mary Jean Irving is getting 75% of the cost of expanding the box plant in Borden as a loan New jobs coming to box plant in Borden-Carleton

“Master Packaging launched a $19.3-million expansion to its plant at the foot of P.E.I.’s Confederation Bridge on Wednesday.P.E.I. is putting up a $14.5-million loan to help pay for the expansion.”

That’s $725,000 per job. Pretty expensive jobs.

I’m thinkin’ of starting a new business this year but I’ll only need about $100,000 for one job – me.

Guess they’ll be ready for me arms and cheque book wide open. The government treats everyone the same.

They can give the rest of the money to someone else, like you.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Editor:

High energy costs have been the roadblock to P.E.I.’s energy independence. There has never been a better time to own our energy utility. With long-term interest rates at an historical low, the price for wind development will be a bargain. We should own the wind energy and force Maritime Electric to run a tighter ship. We have the power to do it. The future of energy is not oil but wind, solar and nuclear.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Stephen Pate

NJN News
January 7, 2009

The Guardian is reporting Hotel project may move to new locale

Dr. Richard Homburg bought his honorary doctorate from St. Mary’s University after donating $1.5 million. He recently donated another $5 million to St. Mary’s. His name is spelled Homburg, not Homberg as some media stories have spelled it. The money comes from banks in Holland where his company trades on the stock exchange.

The real story is Homburg can’t raise the rest of the money. Who can borrow money in today’s financial crisis? Iceland is about to go bankrupt because it put trust in international banking. Leahman Brothers in NYC went bankrupt.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Stephen Pate
NJN News
January 3, 2009

We’re one for two agreeing with the Guardian today but they are wrong suggesting we don’t need an energy crown corporation, Crown corporation not the answer

High energy costs has always been the roadblock to PEI’s independence and financial success. There has never been a better time to take the next move. With long term interest rates in the near negative zone, the price for wind development will be a bargain.

In an electrical utility, how do you increase profits?

Re-decorate the board room.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Stephen Pate

When it couldn’t get much worse, it does because the Liberal need for drugs is insatiable.

Today the Liberals vote themselves big raises for the spring.

Considering the Federal government is taking all measures to save money during the coming depression, what is going on in the heads of Robert Ghiz and his band of Merry Boys and Girls?

Don’t tell me they gave up lucrative jobs in the private sector to serve the public. The current salary earned by Ghiz and the band of Merry Boys and Girls is at least double what they earned before they got elected.

How much was Cynthia earning as a part time broadcaster? $25,000 maybe. She is already double that before perks.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Stephen Pate

Premier Robert Ghiz’s life as a poor boy in a rich man’s neighborhood has turned him into a sucker for any sales pitch from the truly rich.

Aren’t we getting a little tired of his role as rich-boy-wannabee? For the love of God, get a therapist and put your cheque book away.

Right for the get-go, he was handing out money to Maritime Electric, the Irvings and other rich corporations who don’t need public funds. Then there’s Immigrant Scam where he tries to buy off Liberal Party faithful with Chinese money.

Oops, there’s a $1 billion give-away-the-wind farm to ultra rich European banks.’

However, social spending takes not only the back burner: Ghiz puts it out in the Back 40.

Despite promises before the election to reform the DSP, he deep-sixed the program with the help of Myrtle Jenkins Smith, the agent saboteur.

4,300 Islanders need wheelchairs, scooters, walkers, hearing aids etc. according to Statistics Canada. Ghiz doesn’t read those stories. He’s off for cocktails with the rich.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Journal Pioneer printed the briefest version of this story, omitting the $30 million Ghiz-easy-payment loan and the tunnel – they must have a tunnel for their fancy hotel.

The Guardian never prints the story on the web but does carry the 2007 pre-announcement story. All very hush hush and on the Q-T.

Why does one of the world’s richest men need our $30 million?

 

Homburg Invest is planning to spend $45 million in downtown Charlottetown on multiple properties and renovations.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Stephen Pate

This is the silliest use of public money in years. Come on, it’s just Grafton Street. Even people with disabilities can walk across it with ease. It’s just a little tiny walk in a little tiny city.

Well I guess the Charlottetown mucky-mucks can save themselves mingling among the masses for 60 seconds before they enter the Confederation food fair. Here’s a tip for the mucky-mucks – the masses are up there too!

As you read the story it becomes apparent to everyone, except Mayor out-of-the-loop Clifford Lee it’s part of the big plan – tunnel, hotel, government low interest loans -Ghiz feeling insecure amongst the rich again.

There you go David MacKenzie. Without any real needs, you pluck one from thin air.

I know 4,300 Islanders with disabilities who need wheelchairs, scooters, hearing aids and glasses more than David needs to keep his feet dry. David go up to Corney’s Shoes and get yourself some galoshes for the winter.

Tunnel among big plans for downtown Charlottetown

Last Updated: Friday, November 7, 2008 | 4:58 PM AT
CBC

A pedestrian tunnel connecting the Confederation Centre and the Confederation Court Mall is among the big plans for Charlottetown’s downtown.

The $2-million cost of the tunnel would be shared with a developer who wants to build a hotel above the mall.

“We believe it’s really important that the downtown is connected for 12 months of the year,” Confederation Centre CEO David MacKenzie said.

“The accessibility for the centre and for the Confederation Court Mall would be very good for both important downtown organizations.”

The news about the tunnel suggests that plans for the hotel are on again. Mall owner Homberg International, also the planned developer for the hotel, had put the proposal on hold over a parking space dispute with the city. CBC News has learned the provincial government has provided a $30-million loan for the project at an interest rate of four per cent.

Charlottetown Mayor Clifford Lee said he wasn’t aware of the loan or plans for the 80-room hotel to go ahead.
- 30 -

If you click through to the CBC site, the comments are quite humourous.

The Journal Pioneer

In these tough economic times, the Province is taking a big risk. Instead of tightening the purse strings, government is taking a gamble, putting itself deeper in debt in hopes of stimulating the economy and creating jobs.
In Friday’s capital budget, Provincial Treasurer Wes Sheridan announced more than a half billion dollars in spending. There’s money for hospitals, manors, schools, programs, roads and bridges.
The Province plans to spend $510 million over the next five years, a package that more than doubles its capital spending of approximately $60-million annually.
Read the rest of this entry »

By Stephen Pate

Guess what? Tim Banks loves the idea of $500 million in new construction. Wow! Who’d a thought that?

Tim writes -

Smart Move Minister Sheridan…

“I expect that without this announcement our construction industry was looking at very weak forecasts over the next couple of years…”

Yup, expansion at all costs, at the wrong time benefits construction companies well connected to the the government.

That kind of thinking is what brought the United States to the brink of a world depression. We cannot have growth at all costs for long without a collapse.  As much as we would like the economy to grow forever, it can’t. It’s not sustainable. We need to contract for awhile.

Some are predicting the stock market will continue to slide down to about a 4,500 DOW. That will hurt a lot of people. We should be careful how we spend our cash and not plunge into projects that make the rich even richer.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Stephen Pate

The announced capital budget of Wes Sheridan and the Liberal government has to be one of the more ill-timed patronage boondoggles of PEI history. With an operating deficit of $150 million and debt of $1.3 billion, PEI cannot afford to borrow at the beginning of the worst recession since 1929.

For the love of God Wes, banks are failing all over the world and Iceland has gone bankrupt. Get a grip on reality man.

While Sheridan reports $50 million in operating deficit, if you take away the one-time cash flow from the Immigrant Scam it’s really more like $150 million. Mark my words.

Read the rest of this entry »

Editor – As the letter writer points out, public health and safety are being ignored by the Liberal Government in the development of wind energy. Another big concern is that the Liberals are giving away the farm – our hope of energy self-sufficiency.

Related stories

Ghiz, wolf in sheeps clothing

We stand to lose too much

West Prince Graphic

Letter to the Editor

There has been a lot of talk lately about wind turbines coming to West Prince. Most of the attention has been paid to the development in Anglo Tignish.

This is however, only a small piece of the puzzle. If you live on or near North Cape Coastal Drive( Rte 14) or in Milo or Kildare or surrounding communities there is a good chance you will fall victim to wind turbines and high voltage power lines hovering over you home.

Read the rest of this entry »

Last Updated: Wednesday, November 12, 2008 | 5:24 PM AT
CBC

The government’s new wind energy plan dominated much of the first question period of the fall session of the P.E.I. legislature Wednesday.

Opposition leader Olive Crane opened questioning in the fall session of the legislature, focusing on the government’s plan to triple wind power production on the Island over the next five years. The plan would require a billion-dollar investment, mostly by the private sector.

Read the rest of this entry »

Kate MacDonald wrote an informed and readable opinion on the wind energy issue Where the Island Wind is Blowing. Her focus was on carbon credits.

We ask: why are we shipping 300 MW or 85% of the energy off-Island. We need that energy on PEI by anyone’s estimation.

For decades we wanted to own our energy and dreamed of being energy self-sufficient. Ontario keeps energy for its people first and sells the excess. So does Quebec. Ghiz is not a loyal Islander: his loyalties lie elsewhere.

Our new Liberal premier is giving away the farm and for what? Will we get paid? Not likely. Ghiz’s plan is about as dumb as allowing new construction in Charlottetown without parking. The consequences of parking congestion are annoying. Ghiz’s plan will impoverish us forever.

Read the rest of this entry »

GUEST OPINION
KATE MCDONALD

Prince Edward Island is recognized for its significant wind energy potential and for being a leader in renewable energy upon establishing and meeting a renewable portfolio standard for electricity of 15 per cent.

The provincial government has now mapped out the direction for wind energy’s future in their recently released 10-Point Plan. Government’s goal is to see the generation of 500 megawatts (MW) of wind energy on P.E.I. by 2013. From where development stands today this will require 350MW of new wind development, designated in the strategy as 300MW for export and 50MW for on-Island use.

Read the rest of this entry »

Editor: The Ghiz Liberal government is a neo-conservative administration in sheep’s clothing. P3 for public/private partnerships were popular in Ontario with Mike Harris Common Sense revolution. Like the energy deals that give away our future, P3’s are patronage at the biggest level, a way to carve off public assets for private profit.

STEPHEN BRUN
The Guardian

The P.E.I. Federation of Labour will continue to protest P3 legislation, despite not getting any new answers from the province on the matter.

The federation’s 44th annual conference wrapped up Saturday in Charlottetown. The delegates passed several resolutions including ones in protest of government’s proposed public/private partnerships (P3) for long-term care facilities.

Read the rest of this entry »

Last updated at 12:21 AM on 03/11/08
The Journal Pioneer
Editor

We are about to give away the only untapped natural resource on P.E.I., wind energy. The deal is being cut by an inexperienced premier with billionaire businessmen who are capable of getting the upper hand. In my opinion, we will lose our future independence for some short term cash for the deficit.

Other Islanders have recognized this including letters to the papers in West Prince by George Cousins of Campbellton. Much of the discussion has been about the environment. We need to pay attention to the money as well.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Journal Pioneer
Editor,

I attended the recent monthly meeting of the Summerside City Council to support the opposition to the site selection of the proposed wind farm development in St. Eleanor’s.

I would like to inform those who live in these neighbourhoods you are going to be directly effected by this development.

Residents of North Drive and Decker Road will have 400-plus ft. wind turbine in their back yard. Residents of Gavin Estates may not yet have a turbine in our backyard, but we will hear and see the flicker from two of the four that are proposed – it will be louder than the noise from the highway.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Paul MacNeil
Eastern Graphic

Now that the Public Accounts Committee has the go ahead from the auditor general to launch a parallel investigation of the controversial Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), the question becomes whether Liberals will co-operate or stymie the committee’s work.

During the Polar Foods debacle – a controversy with similar themes of government abuse – the then Liberal opposition pushed to have not only Mike Currie, the minister responsible, testify, but also Kent Scales who at the time was head of PEI Business Development Inc.

Read the rest of this entry »

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Editor:

We are about to give away the only uptapped natural resource on P.E.I. – wind energy. The deal is being cut by an inexperienced premier with billionaire businessmen who are capable of getting the upper hand. In my opinion, we will lose our future independence for some short-term cash.

The federal government and provinces control their natural resources and it makes them rich. Oil, gas and timber are controlled provincially. The federal and provincial governments control mining and minerals. Other than P.E.I., all provinces control electrical energy.

Not only do these resources produce billions of tax and royalty revenues, their control is strategic. We are only tenants in our own province when other countries control the natural resources.

P.E.I. is about to give away that resource, for future benefits yet to be negotiated. We will have the resource stolen from under our noses.

Read the rest of this entry »

This Hour Has Five & 1/2 Minutes - don’t miss them

Pilot episode

• • Headlines – like never before
  • Premier Ghiz says don’t worry be happy
  • UPEI Priceless – remix
  • Pete from Peakes – commentary
  • Alanis Morissette – what’s going on behind the scenes

Not Just the News – the whole story

Editor: the Ghiz government is on media and damage control on wind energy issues. Private meetings, fancy press-releases…hold onto your wallets they want to steal the wind energy for their rich friends. Why don’t Islanders own the wind energy? That was the original plan.

ERIC MCCARTHY
The Journal Pioneer

O’LEARY CORNER – Donald Harper says his property in Norway used to be peaceful. That changed after a V-90 wind turbine was erected near his home.

“I’m not very happy about it. It’s not a nice thing to have around your home,” he told energy minister George Webster last night.

Harper was among about 140 West Prince residents who attended a meeting at O’Leary Corner to express their opposition to wind energy development in their communities.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Stephen Pate

I love pundits
they prognosticate portentously
and ponderously
when only the Fates know.

The market is driven upward
because it must,
but every upward has a bust,
a down,
shareholders frown
but next time they’ll all come around
because greed and fear are always in play…
those markets will have another day
and we will survive,
stay alive, and even thrive…
or we won’t.

I have more rhymes
But not this time.

Note – the cheap Victoria Secrets ad was removed because everyone thought I was nuts. Seemed like a good idea at 2 AM.

Don’t worry, be happy.